Re: If You Had A Marching Band... -- Heidelberg MusEd discussion

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Date Posted: 18:11:52 05/08/07 Tue
Author: Brian B
Subject: Re: If You Had A Marching Band...
In reply to: Chad B 's message, "If You Had A Marching Band..." on 11:43:59 04/19/07 Thu

Both Beth and Nickie have a great point, it all depends on the students and the schools needs. I came from a school that had NO football program, the only kind of marching we did was during the halloween parade. We had no chance getting into competative marching because there was no outlet for our band. However, probably one of the only reasons I can play a french horn with any bit of skill and enjoy it was the fact that we had a pep band for our home basketball games. Looking back I wish we could have done mroe because there was a real possibility that I could be much better skilled at french horn had any of our instrumental sections been taken seriously.

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[> Re: If You Had A Marching Band... -- Chris Beach, 09:43:27 01/27/08 Sun [1]

I also believe that the type of Band that is desired depends on the school. Generally, bigger schools have more opportunities than smaller schools. In my High School, we focused on precision, however we were more contemporary style based, but never really competed for anything. Coming from the spectator view, they just want to see a good band that knows what they are doing, and to hear the music. They do not want to see a sloppy band that plays excellent music, and they do not want to see an out-of-tune, that marches excellently in line. They want to see a band that has the grasp of what they are doing, and be able to know that the band has a chance for improvement, which is what any ensemble can wish for.

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[> [> Re: If You Had A Marching Band... -- Nikki M, 16:51:23 01/28/08 Mon [1]

I definately think there are many things that should be taken into consideration here. First of all, the size of the ensemble obviously will be a factor in determining opportunities for the ensemble. Along with this comes instrumentation. I came from a marching band of approximately 55 members, grades 8-12, including color guard. We had 10 percussionists, 8 trumpets, and about 3 low brass TOTAL. Obviously in our situation, we were not going to be able to compete seriously. Our band director did everything that he could to accomodate our size and instrumentation, and focused more on the sound and the entertainment factor. He made sure we sounded good AND looked sharp, and all music was memorized with no exceptions. The crowd complimented us during and after almost every game.
There is also the problem in small band programs of those students who just take it for an easy A and couldn't care less about the ensemble, and won't cooperate no matter what's at stake. With students like this, competition preparation is even more difficult to achieve. If you have a band program in a huge school, you could require auditions for a competition band, ensuring that all students would be willing to put in the time and effort.
Although it would have been awesome to be a precision-oriented competition band, it just isn't an option for most small schools with little funding and limited resources. I think everything depends on the school system, the funding, the opportunities, and the students themselves.

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